PILLOWMAN Diaries: Part One

(What follows is the it's 4:45 a.m.-
on-Saturday-night-and-I-just-need-
to-write-because-I-am-frustrated-
and-can't-sleep-type-thing. Disregard any grammatical errors, please...)

THE SHOW
I had been following THE PILLOWMAN since it opened in New York in the spring of 2005.
I was becoming rather obsessed with the idea of this show... and I hadn't even read it. I finally got a hold of a copy in August and FELL IN LOVE. It was one of the best plays I had read in years. McDonagh is a freakin' master. I knew that someday I was going to have to do this show... and thought why not produce it?

DRAMATISTS
When the show closed on Broadway in September '05, I immediately started contacting Dramatists Play Service as to when the rights may be available. They said that I should check back in a few weeks... it didn't look like they would be available until late spring/early summer. So... I did just that. Except I checked in EVERY WEEK. I wanted this show... and I worked close to six months to lock it in. I think they got tired of me calling them and they granted My Verona (a tiny, TINY theatre company) the first independent license in the US. Not only that... but we're the first to stage the show in the Midwest. Pretty cool, eh? I think so...

DIRECTOR? CAST?
I immediately suggested that Sean take the project on. Of course, he was slightly nervous... and I guess he had the right to be... but I knew this was a play he would really dig. And he did, of course. I'm smart; I know these things. With him at the helm, we began to discuss the cast. Within minutes Sean suggested local actor Chris Browne for Tupolski. Excellent choice. We then decided that our SANTALAND DIARIES star Adam Lewis would be THE perfect Katurian. Right on. The came some interesting choices: me as the hot headed Ariel and Justin Marxen as Michal. Very bold moves. The thought was this: a younger Ariel could make an interestin dynamic with Browne's older, dryer sensibility... and this would be the first time Marxen would have been able to tackle something outside his usual canon. That's always interesting to see...

THE TALENTED MR. MARXEN
Just days before we were to have the official read thru for the much anticipated area debut of THE PILLOWMAN, the actor originally tapped to play Michal - Justin Marxen - was forced to leave the production. Disappointment. Marxen is one of the finest actors in the area... and I love working with him. He did an outstanding job for us last summer with both DB2 and THIS IS OUR YOUTH. Sean and I were really looking forward to having him on board. Sad... but the show must go on...

HELLO, MR. WALLJASPER
So... we sent out feelers and our star - THE Adam Lewis - suggested we check out Tom Walljasper. Obviously, he's brilliant. No question. Is he interested? Yes. Is he available? Yes. Can he play Michal? Tough call. What if we put him into the Ariel role? Oh hell yeah! We offered it to him... and HE ACCEPTED. Yay. We rolled with that punch and moved me into the Michal role which changed the dynamic we were originally going for with the two detectives... but for the better...

READ THROUGH
Yeah... so... this SHOW IS GOING TO BE AMAZING. AMAZING. The cast if PERFECT. Absolutely fantastic. It's gonna be a very good time...
Everyone just played the material so well... and played off each other so well. What more could ask for? Walljasper-Lewis-Browne? Um, yeah... to get these guys in the same show is incredible...

1ST REHEARSAL
We began blocking today. We finished up the entire 1st Act... and it is looking very cool. There is so much skilled work happening here. Browne and Walljasper have an excellent rapport on stage... and the stuff between Lewis and Walljasper is going to be a highlight for sure. Emotionally, Lewis is a powerhouse...And his first monologue/story is going to be creepy as hell. I can't wait to do more with this show...
It's going to go down as one of my faves.

That's all for now...
Look for another entry sometime this week.